Hypertriglyceridemic mice transgenic for the human apolipoprotein C-III gene are neither insulin resistant nor hyperinsulinemic.

Plasma glucose and insulin concentrations and in vivo and in vitro estimates of insulin action were compared in hypertriglyceridemic apolipoprotein C-111 transgenic mice (mean k SE triglyceride concentration = 11.8 k 0.9 mmol/l) and their normotriglyceridemic (1.1 k 0.1 mmol/l) littermates. There were no differences in the glucose (8.9 k 0.2 vs. 9.3 k 0.5 mmol/l) or insulin (172 f 21 vs. 203 k 17 pmol/l) concen- trations of the transgenic and control mice, respectively. Steady- state plasma glucose concentrations at the end of a 150-min period of physiological hyperinsulinemia were also similar in transgenic (6.2 + 0.5 mmol/l) and control mice (6.7 k 0.5 mmol/l). As the steady-state plasma insulin levels were es- sentially identical in the two groups ( - 1000 pmol/l), these results show that whole body insulin-mediated glucose disposal was unchanged in the transgenic mice. Finally, values for iso- proterenol-stimulated lipolysis, insulin-inhibition of lipolysis, and insulin-stimulated glucose disposal were similar in adipo- cytes isolated from transgenic and control mice. It can be concluded from these data that insulin resistance does not develop in hypertriglyceridemic mice transgenic for the human apolipoprotein C-I11 gene.-Reaven, G. M., C. E. Mondon, Y-D. I. Chen, and J. L. Breslow. Hypertriglyceridemic mice transgenic for the human apolipoprotein C-111 gene are neither insulin resistant nor hyperinsulinemic. J Lipid Res. 1994. 35: 820-824.